[Overview] Saints Row 2 may not have been the highest selling game in the franchise. But it's by far the best of the series and one of the most important and influential games of it's generation. Despite being an incredible game, the PC version is held back by a very poor quality port. [The Positives] - Improves upon the original Saints Row in almost every way. - One of the best maps in any game of it's genre. The sheer amount of detail and interiors in this game is impressive. Not even GTA V, a game that was released 5 years later, had this many enterable buildings. - The story is the best balance between comedy and seriousness that the series has to offer. Some of the cutscenes in this game are straight up cinematic quality at times. The characters are all great too. - Saints Row 2 has one of the greatest radio music selections of any game I've played. - The minigames are incredibly fun. - Really fun (albeit janky) game mechanics. [Mixed] - The GOG version is definitely better than the Steam version, but it's still not great without mods. Check out the PCGamingWiki for mods to fix this game further. - The driving physics are just okay. [The Negatives] - The PC port of Saints Row 2 is bad. It's missing the DLC missions, it's buggy, and it runs poorly. Either mod the game, play it on console, or play through an emulator like Xenia or RPCS3. - Some of the difficulty is unfair. I finished the game on Hard, so maybe Normal isn't as bad. - The game can be fairly buggy and unstable, even on console. - A lot of gameplay involves shooting out of cars. This is fine in concept, but aiming in SR2 on controller feels pretty bad. You'll probably want to use keyboard and mouse. - The Dex story arc ends on a cliffhanger that was never resolved. [Conclusion] Despite the areas that haven't aged well, Saints Row 2 is one of the best games of it's console generation and is definitely a must play for anybody who likes open world crime games. Game Rating: 9/10 PC Port Rating: 2/10
[Overview] LIMBO is a very simple game. You play as a child who wakes up in the middle of a forest and has to find his sister. On this journey, you encounter all sorts of traps and puzzles, which are often extremely deadly. The puzzles are pretty well designed and are usually pretty fair. There's a lot of trial and error, and you will certainly die quite often trying to get through the game. The game has been received very positively all around, even being considered among the greatest games of all time. In 2017, the developers of LIMBO created a spiritual successor to the original game called INSIDE, which was also very well received. [The Positives] - Great puzzles. - Great atmosphere. - Great art style. - Great horror elements. - Simple, yet effective premise. - Minimal, but decent story. [Mixed] - Fairly short, but it ends right when the game begins to get stale. It ends up feeling about the right length (roughly 3-4 hours). [The Negatives] - It's not the most replayable game. - $10 is a bit steep for how short it is. Consider buying it on sale. - The GOG version doesn't include achievements. [Conclusion] LIMBO is a really great 2D platform puzzler. It has great design and solid puzzles that'll rack your brain for a few hours. It's art style is unforgettable. Really solid game all around. 8/10
[Overview] Hitman: Absolution is a game that fans of the series will either love or hate. It takes a much different approach compared to most other games in the series. It has more of a focus of story and linear gameplay, instead of being the traditional open sandbox with some light story elements. [The Positives] - Gameplay isn't perfect, but it's enjoyable. - Solid graphics and art style. - Maps are small, but solid. - Great easter eggs. - Decent music. [Mixed] - Although the story isn't particularly good, it's very weird and can be enjoyable at times. There's plenty of bad writing. Lots of plot holes and other issues. However, many moments are 'so bad it's good.' [The Negatives] - It doesn't play like a traditional Hitman game. This isn't the open stealth experience some fans may be expecting. - Much more limited and linear compared to the earlier (and even later) games in the series. - Online servers have been taken offline, making modes like Contracts unplayable. - Some impossible achievements due to servers being offline. (GOG version does not include achievements at all) [Conclusion] Hitman: Absolution is weird. It's essentially a linear action game with a Kojima inspired plot and a Hitman skin on top of it. It's an odd game and is unlikely to please hardcore fans. However, despite it's many issues, I like it. 7/10
[Overview] Amnesia: The Dark Descent is one of the most popular and acclaimed horror games ever made. It's been praised for it's atmosphere, gameplay, and interesting story. [The Positives] - Incredible atmosphere. - Very solid writing. - Solid puzzles. - Very immersive. - Deep and interesting lore. - Enemies can be threatening and deadly. - High quality horror. Not many cheap scares. - Interactable objects are a great part of the gameplay. [The Negatives] - The rare cheesy jumpscare. [Conclusion] Amnesia: The Dark Descent is an absolute horror masterpiece. One of the best games of it's genre and one of my personal favorites. Definitely a must play. 10/10
[Overview] Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs was released around the peak popularity of YouTubers who were playing Amnesia: The Dark Descent and getting millions of views. The Dark Descent was already considered a horror masterpiece but this influx of popularity gave it a huge boost. So when A Machine for Pigs was released it had the timing of being a potential slam dunk. So how did it hold up? [The Positives] - Great art style. - Solid music and audio. - Story is okay. Lore and characters aren't as interesting as The Dark Descent, but it's alright. [The Negatives] - Very limited interaction with objects. You can't pick up much, unlike The Dark Descent. - This game is overall more simple and linear than the first game. - Lighting is far too dark. The Dark Descent was a dark game too, but you could always see a little bit because of the smart lighting design. The Chinese Room clearly didn't pick up on this and thought that pure darkness was the appeal of Amnesia. - Unlimited lantern, regenerating health, and no inventory. No resource management makes the game feel more boring and less dynamic. - Enemy AI is bad and the game is too easy. Dying is almost a non-issue in this game. - This game could be described as a 'walking simulator'. - The game is about 6-7 hours in length. $20 feels too expensive for this. [Conclusion] A Machine for Pigs is incredibly mediocre. It copies The Dark Descent but strips it of anything that made the game unique. It's clear that this game was developed by a different developer than the original. The gameplay is so simple and easy that it's boring. Any 'horror' this game has wears off the moment you realize how useless the enemy AI is. Dying is something you basically have to try to do. This game isn't all bad, the artstyle (mostly) holds up and the audio design is fine. Honestly, just skip this game and play The Dark Descent. Watch it on YouTube if you really want to know the story. 5/10
[h3][Overview][/h3] Telltale's The Walking Dead was one of the biggest game releases of 2012. It was a massive change of pace from the typical zombie game of that era, being more slow and story driven rather than a fast action packed shooter. While the later seasons ended up being fairly lackluster, The Walking Dead's season 1 stands above the rest as being the best game in the series by far. [h3][The Positives][/h3] -Great story. -Great soundtrack. -Great characters and voice acting. -Incredible, bleak atmosphere. -Lots of ambiguity and morally grey choices. -Nice graphics and a great art style inspired by the comics. [h3][The Negatives][/h3] -Most choices don't affect the overall story in major ways. The core story is totally linear, it's only some smaller details that are affected. -The 400 Days DLC was supposed to tie in deeply with the second season, but most of these ideas were scrapped during development. It ended up only being a small part of season two. -The gameplay isn't very deep or difficult. [h3][Conclusion][/h3] While The Walking Dead may be somewhat of a 'movie game', it's also one of the best examples of a video game story done right. Definitely a must play (or watch). 9/10
